Comprising some 400 species of mainly herbaceous perennials, the genus Primula occurs predominantly in the northern hemisphere, with nearly half found in the Himalaya, and a few growing in the southern hemisphere. Many enjoy boggy, marshy conditions, while others thrive in alpine conditions, and some in grassland. Primula vulgaris is a native species occurring in open woodland and shady banks, which also occurs throughout Europe into western Asia. It is a familiar site in our woodlands in spring, producing a basal rosette of deeply veined, toothed or lobed leaves, and clusters of five-petalled, tubular, pale yellow flowers. P. vulgaris ssp. sibthorpii differs in having rose-pink, red, lilac, or white flowers, and is limited in its natural distribution to the Balkans. This subspecies is named in honour of John Sibthorp (1758-96) who was Professor of Botany at Oxford from 1784.